 NCVB Reacts to Changing Economy It's the lead item on almost every newscast, talk show hosts and presidential candidates are debating it and forecasters are watching it - the U.S. economy is slowing and budgets are tightening in response. Knowing the nation's changing economic landscape will present challenges for our industry this Spring, the Nashville Convention & Visitors Bureau (NCVB) is adjusting its marketing efforts to adapt. Through collaborative and creative programming we are working to drive business in Music City. In February, the NCVB created special tour packages, website promotions and advertising for targeted markets to promote Black History Month events, exhibits and concerts around the city. The NCVB also rolled out a new value-driven marketing program designed to increase business during slower periods. The program, titled "Nashville for a Song," invites hotels to provide aggressive rates for open dates. The NCVB then builds packages around those dates and promotes the special deals on our website, through regional advertising and bi-monthly e-blasts to a visitor database of nearly 200,000. Over the next few months you will also begin to see changes taking place in the NCVB's advertising, from evolving creative to increasing placement. Radio spots, cut by Nashville celebrities, will run in key target markets around the region, and the NCVB will also create a special New York Times insert to highlight special Spring and Summer exhibits and events in Music City. The insert will appear in the Atlanta, Louisville, Lexington and Memphis markets. The NCVB is focused on the challenges ahead and is proactively working on your behalf to increase visibility, create new strategies and ultimately attract more visitors to Music City in the coming months. |
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Industry Indicators
January's hotel occupancy rate was 51.9%, a decrease of 0.4% compared to January 2007. The YTD hotel occupancy rate is 51.9%, a decrease of 0.4% compared to 2007 YTD. January hotel tax collections were $1,739,775 an increase of 10% compared to January 2007. YTD hotel tax collections are $14,845,018 an increase of 6.1% compared to the same time last year. |
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Live Music Venue Sign  Visitors to Music City are now able to easily identify the best places to hear great live music! As the next step in our efforts to promote the Live Music Venue program, the NCVB has created a new collateral piece. In addition to the signature guitar pick street sign, we now have a new four-color brochure highlighting venues and other businesses that proudly display a Live Music Venue sign. The brochures are distributed in visitor and convention packets as well as in our Visitor Information Centers. In addition to the Live Music Venue brochure, an exclusive page on our website to showcase our venues, has been created at www.visitmusiccity.com/music/musicvenues. If you offer live music, then make sure Music City visitors know about it! Learn how you can become a Live Music Venue. Call Allie Hardee at 615-259-4734 or email her at allie@visitmusiccity.com to order your guitar pick sign today. |
Hit of the Month  Jack Daniel's Tennessee Whiskey's signature black label is known the world over, and this month the NCVB is giving you a chance to own a piece of the famous brand at a discounted price. All Jack Daniel's items, including t-shirts, shot glasses, hats and food items are 20% off in March. The items are available at both Visitors Center locations. This discount cannot be combined with any other promotion.
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| The CVB Sales, Marketing & Membership Teams: Sales The Convention Sales team spent much of February on the road, making sales calls and attending multiple tradeshows, including the Religious Conference Managers Association in Orlando, MPI Professional Education Conference in Houston and Destination Showcase in Washington D.C. The team made 230 contacts and produced 57 leads for 121,000 total room nights. The Tourism Sales team attended ABA and made contact with 115 attendees and returned with 78 leads. Sales booked the BMC Software meeting for April 2008, resulting in 7,100 total room nights. Marketing Created a new Live Music Venue brochure to promote music venues to Nashville's visitors. This program also includes a new map of live music venues on www.visitmusiccity.com. Worked with Travelocity to develop a sweepstakes and advertising campaign to increase the city's visibility and online bookings. Revamped the NCVB Media Plan for the remainder of the fiscal year to adapt to the changing economy. |
Upcoming Member Events NCVB Sales Training SeminarSpecial Guest Speaker John Boyens March 13 Sessions begin at 9:30am Sheraton Music City Hotel Registration information available on NCVB website: www.visitmusiccity.com/salestraining Sell Nashville Meeting March 27 7:45-8am Networking 8-9am Sell Nashville Meeting NCVB Boardroom Maximize Your Membership Use your NCVB membership benefits to grow your business! For more information on how to maximize your membership please contact Fatima Thompson, manager of Member Services at 615-259-4744 or fatima@visitmusiccity.com. Membership Invitation If you know a company that would benefit from an NCVB membership, please let us know. We will be happy to contact them. Chris Brown, Vice President of Membership 615-259-4751 or chris@visitmusiccity.com For a complete listing of our new members as well as existing member businesses, visit our online membership section at www.visitmusiccity.com/members |
Brand Champion  Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt is an amazing resource serving children and families from throughout our community and around the world. The hospital provides innovative, world-class care to its patients, each day looking for new and better ways to heal children. One such example is a unique program with the motto "Music Heals." The program funded by the Julian T. Fouce Music Therapy Fund employs music as a way of healing. Patients can play different instruments, compose songs, sing, or just listen. What else would you expect from a hospital located in Music City? The Children's Hospital employs a full-time music therapist to run the program, but well-known music artists such as Rascal Flatts have also been known to participate. For this wonderful program, the Monroe Carell Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt is our March Brand Champion! |
